Restraint and Isolation

The Washington State Legislature directs funds for OSPI to monitor and publish rates of restraint and isolation, as well as offer supports to schools and districts to reduce the use of these practices.

Laws, Resources, & Training

Washington state law does not allow the use of restraint and isolation on K-12 students during school-sponsored instruction and activities, unless necessary to stop behaviors that will cause serious harm. OSPI recognizes the importance of keeping students and staff safe from physical and emotional harm. We therefore encourage districts and schools to build systems that support students in distress and prevent crises before they occur. To support this work, we have collected free training opportunities, relevant laws, and resources recommended by advocates and educators.

Data & Reporting Requirements

Since 2015, Washington state law requires staff to report any use of restraint and isolation to the school’s principal, the district office, and the student’s caregiver(s). Districts then report this information to OSPI, and we publish the data on our website. To support schools and districts with these requirements, we have collected relevant laws and summarized each one for ease of understanding.

Reducing Restraint & Eliminating Isolation (RREI) Project

This statewide initiative operates from June 2023 – June 2025. Find information on Demonstration and Pilot Sites, as well as technical assistance.

Training (Professional Development)

OSPI is offering pre-recorded professional development on pdEnroller, as well as hosting a number of in-person and live virtual trainings. In addition, paraeducators can access free statewide standards-based training through PESB's Paraeducator Certificate Program on Professional Learning US (PLUS).

Pre-Recorded Trainings Available Now

Collaborative & Proactive Solutions Training: Moving from Power to Problem Solving with Dr. Ross Greene

  • 3 clock hours (1.5 Equity / 1.5 Special Education)
Upcoming Trainings

Collaborative & Proactive Solutions with Dr. Ross Greene

  • 12 clock hours (6 Equity / 6 Special Education)

Current Law

The following provisions apply to all students, including those who have an individualized education program (IEP), or plan developed under Section 504.

  • Use of restraint or isolation is permitted only when reasonably necessary to control spontaneous behavior that poses an imminent likelihood of serious harm.
  • Districts must annually submit number of incidents of restraint and isolation to OSPI, and OSPI must publish this data to its website (insert link to Data & Reporting Requirements page).

Definitions

Restraint: Physical intervention or force used to control a student (including the use of a restraint device) to restrict a student's freedom of movement.

Isolation: Restricting the student alone within a room or any other form of enclosure, from which the student may not leave.

Likelihood of serious harm: A substantial risk that physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon themselves or another.

Sources: RCW 28A.600.485 and WAC 392-172A-01109

Prohibited Practices

It is the policy of Washington state to protect children from assault and abuse. Therefore, the following practices are prohibited:

  • Prone (lying face-down) restraints,
  • Supine (lying face-up) restraints,
  • Wall restraints,
  • Any other act that restricts a student’s breathing,
  • Any act that causes bodily harm beyond temporary marks.

Source: RCW 9A.16.100 and WAC 392-172A-02076

Full Legal Definitions

"Isolation" means restricting the student alone within a room or any other form of enclosure, from which the student may not leave. It does not include a student's voluntary use of a quiet space for self-calming, or temporary removal of a student from his or her regular instructional area to an unlocked area for purposes of carrying out an appropriate positive behavior intervention plan.

"Restraint" means physical intervention or force used to control a student, including the use of a restraint device to restrict a student's freedom of movement. It does not include appropriate use of a prescribed medical, orthopedic, or therapeutic device when used as intended, such as to achieve proper body position, balance, or alignment, or to permit a student to safely participate in activities.

"Restraint device" means a device used to assist in controlling a student, including but not limited to metal handcuffs, plastic ties, ankle restraints, leather cuffs, other hospital-type restraints, pepper spray, tasers, or batons. Restraint device does not mean a seat harness used to safely transport students. This section shall not be construed as encouraging the use of these devices.

Source: RCW 28A.600.485

“Likelihood of serious harm” means:

(1) A substantial risk that:

(a) Physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon his or her own person, as evidenced by threats or attempts to die by suicide, or inflict physical harm on oneself;

(b) Physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon another, as evidenced by behavior that has caused such harm or that places another person or persons in reasonable fear of sustaining such harm; or

(c) Physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon the property of others, as evidenced by behavior that has caused substantial loss or damage to the property of others; or

(2) The person has threatened the physical safety of another and has a history of one or more violent acts.

Source: WAC 392-172A-01109

The following actions are presumed unreasonable when used to correct or restrain a child: (1) Throwing, kicking, burning, or cutting a child; (2) striking a child with a closed fist; (3) shaking a child under age three; (4) interfering with a child's breathing; (5) threatening a child with a deadly weapon; or (6) doing any other act that is likely to cause and which does cause bodily harm greater than transient pain or minor temporary marks. The age, size, and condition of the child and the location of the injury shall be considered when determining whether the bodily harm is reasonable or moderate. This list is illustrative of unreasonable actions and is not intended to be exclusive.

Source: RCW 9A.16.100

Restraint and Isolation Legislative Workgroup

ESSB 5693 Sec. 501(3)(h)(i) provided a directive to create an advisory workgroup to address student restraint and isolation in Washington state. The workgroup was facilitated by the University of Washington SMART Center and guided largely by the lived experiences of self-advocates, families, and educators. They met nine times from August – December 2022, during which four categories of recommendations were developed:

Eliminate isolation and chemical restraint from schools; Improve access to proactive and effective mental health supports, and trauma-informed behavior supports;

Review the full Crisis Response Workgroup Legislative Report

  • Increase educator training of de-escalation practices;
  • Improve data collection and reporting.
Workgroup-Recommended Crisis Programs

To eliminate isolation and reduce the need for restraint, the workgroup found that ongoing educator training of crisis prevention and de-escalation practices is necessary. The following is a list of recommended trauma-informed crisis intervention programs that do not provide training in the use of prone restraint. Districts may consider the specific needs of their students and staff when selecting a program.

Tier 1 Supports

In addition to selecting a high-quality crisis prevention and intervention program, the workgroup found the following classroom practices to be effective for reducing the need for crisis procedures (see below).

  • Defining, teaching, and reinforcing predictable and positive school/classroom expectations and routines using trauma informed lens (PBIS/ISF Tier 1 practices)
  • Building, repairing, and actively evaluating relationships
  • Teaching and practicing self-regulation strategies for adults
  • Direct instruction in self-regulation/Social Emotional Learning skills for students
  • Implementing universal design for learning
  • Proactive behavior management
  • Culturally responsive teaching practices that promote a culture of dignity for all students
  • Consistent access for student’s identified accommodations and communication supports
Tier 2 Supports
  • Reducing staff/student ratios
  • Self-regulation strategy choices for student
  • De-escalation strategies (verbal and non-verbal)
  • Brief functional behavioral assessment (FBA)/behavior intervention plan (BIP
  • Timely access to mental health supports via small groups and family supports
Tier 3 Support
  • Function based escalation review process
  • FBA/BIP Timely access to individualized mental health supports as needed

Data & Reporting Requirements

Statewide Data

Reporting Requirements & Follow-Up

Washington state law (RCW 28A.600.485) requires that each incident of restraint and isolation be documented and reported. Data collection around incidents of restraint or isolation is neither a special education nor a discipline collection, but rather a school safety-related collection. Requirements are summarized below, along with the specific legal language pertaining to each group.

Staff Members

When a student is restrained or isolated, the staff member who carried it out needs to tell the principal right away and submit a written report to the district within two (2) business days. This written report needs to include:

  • Date and time that it happened 
  • Name and job title of the staff member
  • Description of what led to the restraint or isolation
  • Type of restraint of isolation, and how long it lasted
  • Whether or not the student and/or staff member was injured
  • Recommendations for supporting the student and staff so it doesn’t happen again

Legal language can be found in Section (5) of RCW 28A.600.485

Schools

The school needs to tell the student’s caregiver(s) within 24 hours and send a written notification within five days.

The school needs to meet with the student and their caregiver(s) to discuss:

  • The behavior that led to the restraint or isolation
  • How appropriate this response was to the behavior

The school also needs to meet with the staff member who carried out the restraint or isolation to discuss:

  • If procedures were followed correctly
  • What support or training the staff member needs

Legal language can be found in Sections (4) and (6) of RCW 28A.600.485

Districts

Districts need to summarize written reports from staff members and submit this summary to OSPI by November 1st. For each school, the district will report:

  • Total number of restraints and isolations
  • Number of students restrained or isolated
  • Number of student and staff injuries
  • Each type of restraint and isolation used

Legal language can be found in Section (7)(a) of RCW 28A.600.485

OSPI

OSPI needs to publish the data from districts to its website by March 30th of each year. This data helps guide state work to reduce the use of restraint and isolation. These can be found at the very top of this page!

Legal language can be found in Section (7)(b) of RCW 28A.600.485

Legal Language from the Revised Code of Washington (RCW 28A.600.485)

(4) Following the release of a student from the use of restraint or isolation, the school must implement follow-up procedures. These procedures must include: (a) Reviewing the incident with the student and the parent or guardian to address the behavior that precipitated the restraint or isolation and the appropriateness of the response; and (b) reviewing the incident with the staff member who administered the restraint or isolation to discuss whether proper procedures were followed and what training or support the staff member needs to help the student avoid similar incidents.

(5) Any school employee, resource officer, or school security officer who uses isolation or restraint on a student during school-sponsored instruction or activities must inform the building administrator or building administrator's designee as soon as possible, and within two business days submit a written report of the incident to the district office. The written report must include, at a minimum, the following information:

The date and time of the incident; The name and job title of the individual who administered the restraint or isolation; A description of the activity that led to the restraint or isolation; The type of restraint or isolation used on the student, including the duration;

(6) The principal or principal's designee must make a reasonable effort to verbally inform the student's parent or guardian within twenty-four hours of the incident, and must send written notification as soon as practical but postmarked no later than five business days after the restraint or isolation occurred. If the school or school district customarily provides the parent or guardian with school-related information in a language other than English, the written report under this section must be provided to the parent or guardian in that language.

(7)(a) Beginning January 1, 2016, and by January 1st annually, each school district shall summarize the written reports received under subsection (5) of this section and submit the summaries to the office of the superintendent of public instruction. For each school, the school district shall include the number of individual incidents of restraint and isolation, the number of students involved in the incidents, the number of injuries to students and staff, and the types of restraint or isolation used.

(7)(b) No later than ninety days after receipt, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall publish to its website the data received by the districts. The office of the superintendent of public instruction may use this data to investigate the training, practices, and other efforts used by schools and districts to reduce the use of restraint and isolation.

  • Whether the student or staff was physically injured during the restraint or isolation incident and any medical care provided; and
  • Any recommendations for changing the nature or amount of resources available to the student and staff members in order to avoid similar incidents.